Concerning Skyfire's Unfortunate Courtship
by Sakrea
Summary: When the Ark's Security Director takes an interest in a certain shuttle, he suddenly finds his life much more complicated. Skyfire/Red Alert
1. Concerning Unneeded Inspections

"So you are absolutely sure that this is safe?"

"Yes." Skyfire insisted once more. "I have flown thousands of times, at leisure and war and I have yet to crash."

"You crashed into the North Pole."

"Due to bad flying conditions and faulty navigation equipment." Skyfire replied calmly, although his voice was beginning to sound strained. "Currently we are flying toward Washington DC from Los Angeles in the midst of a very mild summer climate. Trust me Red Alert, it is safe."

The security director looked like he might argue further, but seemed to think better of it at the moment. Instead, he settled into nervously tapping his fingers against one of the jet's internal walls.

It took only a few moments for the motion to grate on Skyfire's nerves. "Red Alert, if it would make you feel more secure, feel free to run your own diagnostic on my condition." He finally offered, though the idea of the nervous mech poking around his insides was far from pleasant.

Red Alert straightened up and stopped his fidgeting. He cast a look towards the cockpit and gave a firm, decisive nod. "If I may." he said, standing and immediately picking his way toward the front to observe the gauges and dials.

It took a good deal of time before he seemed (mostly) satisfied with what he saw before he moved back to the cargo hold to pick across every section if plating he could reach. This of course made Skyfire far more uncomfortable than he would have liked to admit.

Despite Red Alert's near constant attempts to wiggle his fingers into seams to see how sturdy his plating was, the jet-former managed to give no reaction for the first ten minutes or so.

It was only when Red Alert began running his hands across a section of plating that was rather intimately connected to his wing that his body protested. His wing struts twitched abruptly, causing his entire form to bob in the air. The force was enough to send Red Alert tumbling.

"What was that? Are we being attacked?" Red Alert yelped from where he'd fallen.

"Just turbulence." Skyfire assured him, his voice a tad shaky.

"Well, keep better control! That is very dangerous!" Red Alert huffed, pushing himself back to his pedes. Much to Skyfire's dismay, the mech immediately went back to probing his seams for weak points.

Skyfire stifled a whimper, disguising it with a thundering of his engines. The sudden increase of speed had the security director staggering back several steps.

"Skyfire!"

"My apologies, my turbines itched." He responded lamely.

"So you went faster?"

"They no longer itch."

Red Alert gave the ceiling of his cargo bay a glare, but dropped the subject. He seemed to understand at least that knocking him over was preferable to a Decepticon attack, which of course was surely the mech's first thought.

"Please hold still while I finish inspecting your paneling." The red mech said crossly, once more moving himself back over to that same spot.

Skyfire cursed his luck and prepared for the worst.

The flier was so tense, that by the time the plating was actually touched again, his joints creaked audibly and his flight path weaved ever so slightly.

If Red Alert had a problem with the actions, he made no mention of it, but he did seem to notice as he had removed his hands and glanced toward the cockpit.

Skyfire turned his attention back to his flying, hoping that focusing on the human airway transmissions might help him ignore the inspection.

It might have worked, had the next touch not been a feather light caress over the panel's surface.

The flier couldn't hide the strangled sound that escaped his vocalizer, nor could he stop the sharp dip of his nosecone. "Red Alert!"

The security director gave no reaction or reply, but instead brushed his hand across the panel once more. The action elicited a squeak from the jet.

"You seem to be rather sensitive in this area." Red Alert noted, almost looking amused.

"Of course I am!" Skyfire protested, releasing any hope of getting out of this situation with his dignity intact. "That panel is directly connected to my wing struts in root mode!"

"So?"

"The wing struts of any flier are highly sensitive to touch!"

There was a pause, in which Red Alert seemed to be considering this new information.

Then, what the security director said next almost floored the flier. Literally.

"I believe a further inspection of your weak points will be needed."


	2. Concerning Unneeded Surveillance

"Skyfire, what are you doing?" Wheeljack asked, peering at him from across the room.

Said flier was currently standing on the edge of a lab table, increasing his considerable height, reaching toward a security camera. "I prefer to keep some of my experiments classified." He said, pressing what looked to be silly putty into the lens of the camera.

"Red Alert won't be happy about that." The engineer noted.

"I will deal with him when the time comes." Skyfire replied, stepping down from the table and wiping his hands off on a rag. "Unfortunately, our security director seems to be very… Interested in my work at this time and it is rather unnerving to have a camera clicking at you constantly."

Wheeljack chuckled and looked back down at the piece of machinery he was tickering with. "So Red Alert has taken an interest in you?"

Skyfire sighed deeply and moved back over to attend to several petri dishes which contained a number of bacteria he and Perceptor were currently studying. "It's rather nerve racking."

"You know he has cameras in the wash racks too." Wheeljack noted, obviously amused.

"Please don't remind me." Skyfire said, shuddering. "I have enough trouble cleaning myself in there without having to think about that."

Wheeljack chuckled and shook his head, but said nothing. That was probably a good thing though, as the majority of his explosions were caused because someone had distracted him during his work.

Skyfire had only a few moments to observe the bacterium in peace before that blasted security camera started clicking, making an attempt to extend its lens. As of this point, it was impossible though, as the putty had hardened over it, preventing movement.

Obviously, the security director realized the problem as the camera stopped clicking, but the loudspeaker to the lab turned on.

"There is something blocking the camera lens in the lab. Wheeljack, Skyfire, could one of you kindly remove it?" Red Alert called through the system.

Skyfire groaned softly, but turned his optics toward the speaker that the voice came from. "I would like to have a bit of privacy while I work Red Alert. The cover stays on for now."

There was a long pause in which the flier thought he might have some peace. He was of course, wrong.

"That is a violation of security protocol." The voice said finally. "If you do not remove it, I will be forced to come down myself and remove the obstruction as well as to perform an inspection to ensure that nothing has made its way into the room while the camera was disabled."

Both Skyfire and Wheeljack winced at that. Red Alert's inspections were highly invasive and detailed. Of course, Skyfire had experienced a full body security inspection once before… That was when Red Alert had taken up a strange fascination with him.

"I will remove it immedia-" Skyfire began.

He was cut off by a loud buzzer. "Too late, I will be down in a few kliks." Red Alert called over the system.

When the sound died out, Wheeljack and Skyfire turned and looked at each other in horror.

"You got me involved." Wheeljack noted.

"I didn't think he'd attend to the problem personally!" Skyfire objected.

"Red Alert is infatuated with you! He'd jump at any opportunity to personally 'inspect' you!" Wheeljack shot back.

Skyfire looked horrified by the idea. "He's not touching my wing struts again!"

Wheeljack made a choking sound and stared at him. "He did what?"

"He inspected my wing struts and claimed he had no idea how sensitive a flier's wings are."

"How does he not know? It's pretty common knowledge." Wheeljack responded.

"Not really." Skyfire sighed, looking at him. "Besides, you only know from personal experience."

The engineer shrugged, but grinned under his mask. "I was told fliers were an interesting experience."

Skyfire snorted. "So you went with Powerglide?"

"Would you have accepted?"

"No."

"Exactly."

They both looked at the door when they heard a tapping of keys outside the main door of the lab.

"Wheeljack, he's coming!" Skyfire hissed. "Now would be a good time for you to make something explode!"

"I don't do it on purpose!"

"Well try!"

The door slide open with a hiss and Red Alert stepped into the room rather quickly. The mech peered around the room, not looking the least bit angry or freaked out as someone interfering with his cameras usually made him.

"Ah, Skyfire." The mech said, locking his optics on the flier as if he hadn't immediately seen him.

"Red Alert, this is completely unnecessary." Skyfire said quickly, trying to step out of the way as the other mech walked toward him. "I can remove the obstruction myself."

"According the archived video feed, it is because of you that the obstruction is there in the first place. Why?" Red Alert's optics darted past him. "Wheeljack, if you must leave, please use the main door. If you sneak out the back door, it may interfere with my inspection."

Said engineer had been stealthily trying to abandon the other scientist and looked only slightly guilty to be caught in the act. "Right, the main door." He said, nodding. He quickly scurried toward that door, giving Skyfire a nod as he escaped. The flier gaped at him.

Red Alert only seemed to be pleased by the mech's fleeing. Of course, it left him alone with Skyfire.

"Now, I must deal with the obstruction." He said, looking professional as he looked up at the camera.

Skyfire cycled his vents in a sigh. "Let me, I'm tall enough to reach it." He volunteered. He knew the other option was to pick the smaller mech up, which was out of the question.

"Please do. I will begin my inspection of the room then."

The flier pulled himself up on the table and reached toward the lens cap, hoping that the mech's inspection took him elsewhere in the room.

The moment that his fingers started scrapping away at the dried putty though, he knew he was wrong.

"Red Alert!" Skyfire yelped, wobbling on the table.

The security director removed his hand from where it had been stroking his foot. He gave no explanation since they both knew he had none.

The flier gave the mech a weak glare before he turned his attention back to trying to peel away the dried goop. Once more, he felt a hand move over his pede, this time higher up though, near his ankle. He chose not to mention it this time, resigning himself to "grinning and bearing it", as the humans put it. That proved to be the worse choice though, as several fingers moved between a seam in his ankle and stroked a bundle of wires there.

Skyfire bit back a groan. Normally such an average bunch of wires were not nearly as sensitive, but the security director's presence always put his systems on high alert, super charging nearly every section of his body. It was a curse that the other mech seemed to be highly enjoying.

He was halfway through the putty and Red Alert had decided that standing on the table next to his leg was far more interesting that trying to tweak his systems from the floor. He was right too.

The security director was running is fingers over wires and sensors along the back of his leg in a near maddening assault. It wasn't long before Skyfire was forced to release a low groan. In response, the hands paused for a brief moment then renewed their inspection with increased energy.

Skyfire wobbled on the table again, nearly clinging to the camera now to keep from toppling over. He opened his mouth to stutter a warning of his unstable condition to the mech below, but he soon realized it seemed to be the other mech's intention.

Two fingers rubbed the edges an atmospheric sensor near his knee. He gave a cry of surprise and immediately tumbled to the floor.

There was a lengthy pause between the two mechs after that, mainly due to the fact that Skyfire was staring in shock at the ceiling, one leg still caught on the table and the other bent underneath his body in what would have been an uncomfortable position had he noticed it.

"Uh… Skyfire…?"

"….Yes?"

"Is your wing supposed to bend like that?"

"No Red Alert. It's not."

There was another pause in which Red Alert seemed to be regretting his plan to push Skyfire off of a table and then ravish him, as the flier was sure that was his plan. Skyfire spent that time wondering if the lack of feeling in his left wing was a good thing or a bad thing. He couldn't decide.

"I'll call Ratchet."

"Please do."


	3. Concerning Much Needed Advice

Inferno was in no way a silent mech, he was a heavy rig designed for front line fighting. So when he walked, it was a thundering sound that was hard to ignore. Thus, it was surprising when he entered the Monitor Room and Red Alert made no motion that he'd noticed the other mechs arrival. Okay, more than surprising. This was Red Alert after all.

After five minutes of silently dwelling by the door, the tapping of one heavy pede was what finally got the other mech's attention, divided as it was.

"Oh… Inferno." Red Alert said, looking a bit meak as his optics glanced hastily back toward the security monitors. "I didn't hear you come in."

Inferno just continued to tap his pede.

"Well I did… I just didn't notice you."

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

"Sorry."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"I should have been paying more attention."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"Uh…"

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"What? D-Did I miss something? Did someone unauthorized get into the base?"

Tap. Tap. Tap.

About the time that Red Alert looked ready to go on the fritz, Inferno granted him a finger pointed at the monitor.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"Oh."

Red Alert ducked his head and minimized the dominating video feed on the screen.

"You heard about that?" he asked timidly.

"I was in the rec room when Ratchet stormed by dragging Skyfire to the med bay."

"Oh."

"I believe he said something along the lines of 'Blasted fraggers and their cameras' needing to keep their 'Primus-be-damned pit-spawned' hands to themselves." Inferno clarified, smirking.

"Everyone heard?" Red Alert squeaked.

Inferno nodded, lips twitching as he tried to hide his amusement. He stepped up behind Red Alert's chair, causing the other mech to flinch briefly before he settled himself back in. "I didn't know there were so many cameras dedicated to the med bay." He mused quietly. Red Alert flinched again.

"Many of them are old…" The Security Director explained. "I had to reactivate them."

"Including this one?" Inferno asked, pointing to the previously maximized video feed. It showed a rather zoomed in shot of Skyfire's aft and wings.

"I was monitoring his repairs!" Red Alert said quickly.

Inferno shot him a look that said he knew better. The security director shrunk back in his chair.

"Listen Red, it's pretty obvious that you have a thing for Skyfire." Inferno said, crossing his arms across his chest. "There's nothing wrong with that."

"There isn't?" The other mech asked quickly. "B-But he doesn't even want to be around me! Most mechs don't!"

Inferno set a hand on the mech's shoulder. "Red…" he started, sighing slightly. "Putting on your serious face and going off on a mech for a security violation isn't a turn on."

Red Alert nervously tapped his fingers on his legs and peered back at the security monitor. Judging by the situation in the med bay, Ratchet was not having an easy time bending Skyfire's wing back into place.

"And in this case, neither is molesting them."

Red Alert jerked and stared hard at Inferno. "How do you know about that?" he squeaked.

"Skyfire told Wheeljack about your mid-air inspection."

"It wasn't that bad…"

"Apparently it was."

The Security Director turned his gaze back on the monitor, seeming to pretend to check up on the bases security. Inferno bumped his shoulder, but that earned only a distracted flinch. "Red."

Red Alert looked over at one of several video feeds that showed the med bay, fingers tapping on the side of keyboard.

"Red."

The other mech only watched as Ratchet smacked Skyfire across the head with a wrench before he used the same tool to replace a mangled piece of plating on the flier's wing.

Shortly after, Skyfire's optics came up from the floor to lock dead on the security camera's lens. He gave it a good hard glare.

"Oh Primus that was a bad idea…." Red Alert finally groaned, turning away from the glaring mech on the screen to bury his face in his hands. "I bent his wing!"

Inferno gave him a comforting pat on the back. "Awkward first try." Inferno dismissed. "Now you just get a chance to fix it."

"You make it sound like a good thing." Red Alert murmured through his hands.

"It can be if you do it right."

The Security Director slipped one finger off of an optic to look at his friend. "What do you mean?"

Inferno leaned over in front of him and grinned. "Follow my advice." He said. "I'll make sure you get your flier."


	4. Concerning Several Related Incidents

The first incident occurred several days after his last painful trip to the med bay. At first, he was utterly clueless, but then, he had perfect reason to be. There was no particular hint that may have given an explanation, but there was no need for one.

The incident was a simple, everyday thing that didn't so much as phase him. Only later, when he was able to put the other pieces together did he realized this was a part of it.

"Well that's odd." Skyfire said, glancing around.

"What is?" Wheeljack asked, popping up from behind what looked to be a modified race car engine. Primus knows what he was doing to it.

"I appear to be missing a rather important electrical connector." Skyfire noted, opening a drawer to check for the piece. "It was right next to me and now it's gone. I can't repair this panel until I find it."

Wheeljack glanced around the counter briefly and shrugged. "Well it's around. It's not like it can just get up and walk away." He noted, grinning behind his mask.

"Unless it was previously part of one of your experiments." The flier replied. "Then it might very well sprout legs."

Wheeljack gave a snorting laugh and flapped a hand at him before he disappeared back behind the large motor.

Skyfire turned away from his friend and searched around his cluttered workspace. After several minutes of pawing through the area, scattering nuts and bolts across the floor, he slumped against the edge of the table with a sigh. Nothing. The blasted thing may as well have sprouted legs and danced away.

About that time, Wheeljack's normally rhythmic tinkering sounds halted and the engineer's optics peeked over the engine, looking a tad confused.

"Oh, I see it." He said suddenly worming around his own space toward Skyfire's.

"Where?" the flier asked, glancing toward where the engineer was looking.

"Here." Wheeljack replied stooping down to the floor to snag the connection out from under the table.

"How did you find that?" Skyfire asked, taking the connector with a surprised look.

The other mech looked almost as confused as he did, replying with a shrug before he turned and went back to his work station.

Just as well, Skyfire mentally dismissed the event and turned back to his own work.

The second incident was a bit out of the ordinary. This time it took place on the day following the first incident and aside from several other reasons, it caught his attention due to his own paranoia.

Using the public wash racks always was unusual for Skyfire. Prior to the war, he'd had his own private wash room at the Science Academy. Unlike the rest of the soldiers, he had yet to grow accustomed to this new invasion of privacy.

Due to a low-altitude patrol flight that morning, the flier's joints felt gritty with sand. Hence why he grudgingly headed into the wash racks during one of its busiest times of day.

As he maneuvered around damp bots, he gave a few nods of greeting, trying not to bump into anyone. It took him several minutes to get to the back where the larger shower stalls were. He was thankful to note that despite the crowded conditions, his normal stall was free. He favored it over the others because of was situated between a wall and a smaller stall, thus lowering the chances that another large mech could peer at him from the other stall. The idea just kind of bothered him.

Skyfire settled himself under the shower head before quickly flicking the flow of cleanser on. He leaned his head under the liquid and allowed himself a moment to enjoy the feeling of it washing through his dirty parts before he reached for his cleaning rag. Then he realized he didn't have it.

"Wonderful." He sighed, leaning into the stall's wall. He'd forgotten his cleaning rag back in his quarters and he was already soaked with cleanser. Now he'd have to either walk back to his room dripping wet or he'd have to wait until he was dry enough to walk back to his room with his dignity intact.

Trying to decide between the two choices, Skyfire noticed a voice coming from the smaller stall next to him. It sounded like Mirage… But why was he muttering angrily to himself?

He didn't get any time to consider the reason because something wet flopped onto his shoulder. His first instinct was to give a yelp of surprise and bump into the other wall in an attempt to run from his attacker.

Skyfire then realized his attacker was a wet rag. He tried to salvage the motion by plucking it off of his shoulder plating in the most dignified manner possible.

"Um… Thank you." He said toward the other stall.

"Just toss it back over when you're done." Mirage replied, although he didn't seem too happy about the idea that his rag was now with the flier.

"Right… I'll be quick." Skyfire assured him.

He received an annoyed grunt in response.

It was later that same night when the third incident occurred. This time, it was so obviously out of place that Skyfire knew something was going on. It was lucky for him that he got an explanation in the end.

Skyfire was not one of the mechs on the Ark known to be a workaholic. Unlike Prowl and several others, he did not work himself all day, forget to refuel, and then go into stasis lock. Even so, the flier did occasionally get wrapped up enough in his work that he forgot to take an energon break.

After having fixed the piece of equipment he'd been tasked with repairing yesterday, Skyfire had gratefully returned to the researching of a pet project of his. It was a series of experiments involving several of the human race's most deadly diseases. They seemed to be having trouble curing them and he found their study fascinating. Thus, he had started his experiments in a quest to find the cure.

Usually, he and Perceptor worked on the project together, as the other scientist's alt mode was usually a necessity for observation of cells. Today though, the other scientist was nursing a mental wound back in his quarters. The poor mech had been on the receiving end of one of the Twin Terror's pranks.

His other lab partner, Wheeljack, was also busy with other work. He was unfortunate enough to be placed on night patrol and would not be back until sunrise. Thus, the flier was left to work alone in the lab.

Bent over a data pad, Skyfire had been making chemical calculations for hours. Once more he was attempting to work out a correct mix of the right materials needed for possible vaccinations that he could later test on cells in a Petri dish. He'd hardly noticed the amount of time that had gone by, consumed in his work as he was.

Nearing 11 PM, the door to the lab slid open with a hiss. Strange since no one was due to join him in the room until the next morning at the very least.

Skyfire looked up from his data pad and cast a surprised look toward the door. Okay. That was strange.

"Inferno." Skyfire greeted with a nod, giving the mech a confused look.

The red mech was wearing a stupid-happy grin on his face as he strolled across the room toward him. "You're up late." The mech noted a tad too cheerfully.

For one, Skyfire was not used to seeing any mech wearing that kind of grin, let alone a mech like Inferno. That and the mech was coming toward him with that grin. It was making his circuits crawl.

"Is there something I can help you with?" The flier asked cautiously.

"Nope, I'm here to help you." Inferno responded, hoisting up a rather large cube of energon as he stepped up to the other.

Skyfire shuttered his optics in surprise, staring at the cube. Now that he thought about it, his fuel levels were rather low… "Um… Thank you." He replied, taking it. "I lost track of the time."

Inferno nodded and continued grinning at him, though it seemed a tad less creepy now. It seemed more like he knew something Skyfire didn't.

"How did you know?" Skyfire asked after a moment, taking a large swallow of the cube's contents.

"Oh, well I didn't know." Inferno replied. Skyfire tried not to dwell on the fact that he looked a bit mischievous.

"But… You brought me energon."

Inferno waved a hand at him and turned back toward the door he'd entered through. It seemed he believed the conversation was over, because in the next moment he turned and strolled to the door.

"Inferno!" Skyfire yelped, staring after the bot as he tried to vacate the room

The fire rig merely keyed open the door before he turned to look back at the flier with a grin. "He's using his powers for good now." he said. Then he turned and fled out the door.

It took only a moment of flat out confusion before everything suddenly fell into place. That was followed by another moment of silently cursing the responsible mech and his blasted cameras. This was followed by a large, angry gulp of his energon, which then triggered another thought process.

Okay, so other than the spying, it wasn't that bad. Red Alert's snooping had certainly shown its good side, but that still didn't make the lack of privacy any better.

Skyfire cast a glance at a nearby security camera. It gave off several clicks as it zoomed out and suddenly focused elsewhere in the room. "This can't end well for me…"


	5. Concerning A Human Tradition

There was a long period of time in which neither scientist spoke. Each had their optics locked on the strange item resting perilously close to their cluster of Petri dishes.

"What is it?" Skyfire asked.

"Why is it here?" Perceptor questioned in response.

The two exchanged a look before Skyfire reached out and grasped the object carefully between two fingers. "I think I know."

"I have a theory as well." The red mech replied.

Once more the two exchanged a look before each shot a glance at a nearby security camera that was focused intently on the pair.

"Supposedly the rumors have grown rather crude…" Skyfire murmured.

"According to Sideswipe, you have performed a large number of sexual acts in front of those cameras." Perceptor noted.

"You believe him?"

"Goodness, no."

The microscope turned from the table and moved toward the large door at the other end of the room. "Now shall we vacate the room so that your mysterious friend may lay out another gift?" he asked, turning to smile at the flier.

"Not friend: stalker." Skyfire corrected, following after the other scientist.

Perceptor just smiled and lead the way out of the lab and toward the rec room.

Before Skyfire followed after him, he shot a brief glance around the room to see which cameras were trained on him. Finding what he hoped was a blind spot on his left; he carefully slipped the small object into a compartment in his hip armor.

Okay, admittedly, he liked the gift. It did represent a human tradition, but he still found himself enjoying it.

There was no harm in keeping a flower, right?

"It appears you are a hot topic today." Perceptor noted, peering around the rec room as he sipped his energon.

Skyfire glanced around at the other scientist's words, finding that nearly every mech in the room was watching him, with most sporting ridiculous grins. It made him feel uneasy.

"It seems so." The flier agreed, taking a sip of his own cube.

"Hopefully Sideswipe has not started a new rumor."

"No, it looks like he's enjoying himself far more than that." Skyfire said, gesturing to where he and Sunstreaker were visibly trying not to break out in peals of laughter.

While the two scientists watched the twins with interest, they missed the approach of another Autobot.

"Morning Percy. Morning Skyfire." Hound greeted, causing both heads to be snapped back up to face him.

"Is there something we can do for you?" Skyfire asked, glancing nervously around the mech to where Mirage was glowering at him.

"Oh, no." Hound replied, optics twinkling. "I'm just here to drop off a gift." With that, the green scout extended his hand and set a single daisy on the table next to Skyfire's hand. The flower was identical to the one he had found in the lab.

The scout only chuckled at Skyfire's confused expression before he stepped to the side to allow his mate to step forward.

Mirage, shooting an annoyed glance at his bondmate, unceremoniously dropped a second daisy next to the first.

"Wait, why are you-?"Skyfire began.

"Oh… Oh dear." Perceptor murmured beside him, optics wide. The flier quickly turned his optics on the source of his friend's surprise.

The sight that greeted him had his jaw hanging open several inches. In front of their large table, every mech in the rec room had gathered in a single file line. Most wore stupid-huge grins, but every single one held a daisy.

"Oh you've got to be kidding…" Skyfire groaned.

"Not on your life." Sideswipe snorted, quickly adding his daisy to the pile.

"This is far funnier than any prank Sides could have pulled." Sunstreaker added, setting his flower by the rest. His twin made an offended noise at the comment, but the two soon moved to the side with the rest.

The next few mechs went by in a blur. Tracks, Bumblebee, Bluestreak, Smokescreen, several others went by, adding a flower and usually a teasing comment.

Skyfire was only pulled out of his surprised daze when Optimus Prime himself set a flower at the top of the pile.

"S-Sir?" Skyfire squeaked.

"I think it's cute." The Prime said. "And it's nice to see Red Alert obsessing over something other than his work."

The flier gaped at him as he strolled away. He felt his last hope flutter away and he slumped back in the chair.

"I think everyone approves."

Skyfire's head snapped up, optics narrowing and locking on the next mech in line. "Traitor." He spat.

Wheeljack chuckled, head fins flashing in tandem, before dumping his daisy next to Prime's. "What? It's kinda cute."

Skyfire turned to look seriously at the red mech beside him. "Percy, you are my only friend."

"Ouch, right in the spark." Wheeljack chuckled, clasping his hands over his chest in mock pain. Then, with a brief wave in Perceptor's direction, he moved out of the way.

"Well that seemed a little harsh." Inferno noted with a grin, stepping up to the table once the engineer retreated. This time, five daises were added to the pile.

"Inferno." Skyfire said darkly. "This has got to stop."

"Does it?" the big rig asked, smirking. "Well I suppose I could tell Red that molesting your leg works better…"

"No!" Skyfire yelped. "I like the flowers!"

"Thought so." Inferno chuckled. "Well, if you like them that much, how about humoring him with a date?"

"No." Skyfire replied flatly. The crowd around them gave a collective groan, causing the flier's optic ridge to twitch.

"Fine." Inferno replied with a shrug.

There was a stretch of silence then, where the two mechs regarded each other evenly, almost daring the other mech to make another move.

"You know the saying 'the calm before the storm'?" Inferno asked suddenly, face even.

"I do. Why?" Skyfire answered just as evenly.

"This is it."

Slag it.


	6. Concerning A Deal

It was with a weary, recharge-deprived sigh that Skyfire peeled himself from his berth and stood up. He then cast a suspicious glance around the room, finding nothing concerning, before his optics fell on his desk. On said item of furniture, was a pile of browning daisy's that were beginning to smell rather foul.

It had been two weeks since he had received those flowers and the threat from Inferno. Needing hardly any prompting from Perceptor, the flier had kept the delicate flowers. Despite the unorthodox way they had been delivered, he did rather like them. Not that he liked the mech they had come from.

Venting hot air from his systems, Skyfire stood up and crossed the room. Grabbing a trash bin from beside his desk, he carefully scooped the decaying flowers into the container. Judging by the damp, brown spot left underneath them, he'd delayed their removal for too long. He gave a wince and set the bin back down, vowing to dispose of it properly later.

Right now, he wanted to worry about getting to the lab early and safely, as he had done for the past two weeks. Checking his internal clock, he gave a satisfied nod at the time of 6:30, then he opened the door to his quarters and peered out. Nothing on the right, nothing on the left…

"The coast is clear…" he murmured, scuttling down the hallway as fast as he could. After all, Red Alert's monitor duty started at 6:45…

* * *

_**"SKYFIRE!"**_

After a series of bangs and crashes, the flier suddenly found his optics on the ceiling, his back on the floor, and his legs on top of the lab table. Curious.

"What happened?" he asked, surprised.

Wheeljack's head then came into view, meaning that the engineer had probably run for cover as soon as Skyfire had jerked in his chair. "You were in recharge." He explained, grinning behind his mask. "Deep too."

Skyfire twitched. He'd been vulnerable. But for how long…? He checked his internal clock. "I was out for two cycles!" he squeaked.

Wheeljack gave him a funny look. "You've been here since 6:30?" he asked. "Why?"

"You of all mechs, should know." Skyfire huffed, finally deciding he probably shouldn't be on the floor. "Traitor." He said as he tried to stand.

The engineer chuckled at him and did his best to assist the larger mech. "We had a deal, remember?"

"Yes yes. Doesn't mean I can't bring up your betrayal." Skyfire noted. The deal of which the engineer mentioned was more of a promise. The flier had agreed to forgive the engineer's traitorous actions if he promised to no longer continue to be a part of Red Alert's, or rather Inferno's, plots.

"I just delivered a gift." Wheeljack replied, obviously grinning.

Skyfire shot him a brief glare before glancing around the room frantically. Nothing. No one. Didn't look like anyone had been here or disturbed anything while he was asleep. Frag it, even the security cameras weren't zoomed in on him! It was down-right… Normal!

"Sky, you gotta calm down." Wheeljack chuckled, noticing the shuttle's twitchy behavior. "It's been two weeks!"

The flier shot him a desperate look. "I can't calm down…" he moaned, slumping against the lab table. It gave a hearty groan of protest which the mech ignored. "You heard what Inferno said!"

Wheeljack patted the other mech's arm. "The 'calm before the storm' nonsense, I know." The Lancia said. "So what?"

"I just can't stop thinking about it." Skyfire groaned, rubbing a hand across his optics, tired despite the nap he hadn't intended to take. "I mean I have no idea what the frag he's plotting or when it'll happen! I haven't recharged a full night since!"

"It's not like he's gonna kill you or anything." Wheeljack noted, patting him again. "Just relax and let it happen."

Skyfire twitched and shot a glare at him. "Let it happen? Red Alert has molested me on more than one occasion, somehow gotten Mirage to hate me, and he feels the need to stalk me around base with those blasted CAMERAS!" he practically screeched. "I can't just sit back and let him sneak up on me and do who KNOWS what!"

Wheeljack flinched a bit, but to his credit, didn't move away from the much larger mech. "Well hey, for now you're safe. So just relax and I'll help you keep an eye out for your admirer, okay?"

For one long moment, Skyfire actually seemed to be considered letting out a glass-shattering scream of frustration. Instead, he let his tense body slump once more against the lab table, rubbing his forehead with the heel of his palm. "Yes. Yes you're right, I have work I need to do anyway." He sighed. "I shouldn't be worrying about this now… And I apologize for yelling, that was uncalled for."

Wheeljack waved the apology off and grinned at him under his mask. "No problem."

Skyfire set a hand briefly on the other mech's shoulder as a show of thanks before he stood back up and turned to view the work he'd fallen asleep on.

It was only when he'd fully turned that he realized his careful weeks of sneaking around and avoiding everything was all for naught. Somehow, while he'd been talking to Wheeljack, an intruder had snuck into the room and placed himself directly across the lab table from him.

As Skyfire stared down at the mech in a mix of surprise and horror, Red Alert peered back up rather meekly.

"Hi Skyfire… Hi Wheeljack…" Red Alert said quietly, looking near ready to blow a fuse of some sort.

Wheeljack gave a snort of laughter. "Well I missed him completely. Must've been standing behind you the entire time!" he said, obviously finding the entire thing hilarious. "Oh, and hey Red."

Skyfire's optic ridge quivered as he stared down the security mech. All that time…. Careful measures so he'd never be caught off guard… Ruined.

Red Alert fidgeted under the larger flier's gaze, wringing his hands in front of him. He seemed to be hoping for some kind of reply to his greeting.

"You… Why are you here?" Skyfire asked tensely, looking about ready to blow a fuse as well.

Red Alert jumped slightly at the direct question, optics widening a fraction. "U-Uh... Well…. I… I sort of have a… Question."

"What kind of question?" Skyfire asked quickly.

Red Alert froze for a moment, body ridged, optics flickering. The small mech's lower lip trembled ever so slightly before he spoke again. "Well I…. I just… Ohhh…" he moaned, optics dropping to stare at his feet. "Would you like to out… Together… Sometime… Maybe?"

Skyfire's optic ridge gave a full on spasm. "Yes."

Red Alert's head snapped up so abruptly it was a wonder it didn't fly off if his neck. "R-Really?"

Biting down hard on his lower lip, Skyfire rubbed a hand across his face. "Yes." He said again, this time on a sigh. "Just… Please… Tell Inferno to call off whatever he's planning…"

The Security Director looked confused for only a moment before understanding flashed through his optics. "O-Oh… Okay, I'll tell him…" he said slowly. Oddly, the mech didn't seem put off in the least now that he knew exactly why the flier had agreed to go out with him.

Skyfire muttered his thanks into his hand. Already, he was contemplating a good, solid night's rest. His mind hardly acknowledged the deal he'd just made.

"And I suppose I'll just… Look at the rosters and find out… uh… When the best day might be… Okay?" Red Alert said, looking rather bright.

"Sure, sounds good…" Skyfire replied distractedly.

Red Alert gave him a bright smile before he turned and walked rather happily toward the door. He tapped the button to open it and stepped halfway through before he paused and turned back to look at the shuttle. "Oh, and Skyfire?" he called quickly. "I was almost too scared to come ask you myself, but Inferno just barely convinced me to ask now. So… Thanks for saying yes." There was another uncharacteristically cheerful smile from the security director and he disappeared out the door.

Skyfire's mouth dropped open while Wheeljack let out a low whistle beside him.

"Wow. Guess there was no 'storm' after all." The engineer noted. "Inferno tricked you."


	7. Concerning A First Date

"Are you okay?"

Red Alert's optic gave another nervous twitch. "Perfectly fine," he replied quickly, fingers clattering rhythmically against his thigh.

"You seem…" Skyfire watched the Security Director, searching for the best, gentlest term. He settled for blunt. "Twitchy. Are you nervous?"

Red Alert twitched again, optics flickering away from his large date to settle on the huge screen across the field in front of them. "Of course I'm nervous. I'm always nervous," he replied in an oddly calm way. "I'm away from the Ark, sitting in a field full of humans, at a drive-in movie theatre that has a long history of harassment from Rumble and Frenzy, it's dark, we're terribly unprotected, and of course all of this is added to my overall nervousness of being on my first date with a mech whom I have a strange fascination with and whom my best friend had to blackmail to agree to go on a date with me!"

Skyfire's optics flickered in surprise. He had hardly expected that length of response. "I don't think that Rumble and Frenzy would attack while we are present," he offered lamely by way of comfort.

Red Alert harrumphed and crossed his arms over his chest, optics now locked intently on the commercials playing on the large movie screen. They weren't even to the feature film and already the date was turning into an awkward nightmare.

Despite Skyfire's simple stubbornness over the idea of a date, he'd been notably wary of spending any amount of time with the jumpy Security Director. After all, how were they at all compatible? Skyfire thrived on the trust of others yet Red Alert could not provide that to anyone. Not to mention that the Lamborghini had an overly intrusive method of flirting…

"I'm sorry!" Red Alert suddenly burst out, burying his face in his hands. "I didn't mean to sound that horrid, I'm just so nervous!"

The sudden outburst had Skyfire jerking back slightly, optics brightening in surprise. "I could tell," he supplied.

Red Alert peeked out from behind his fingers. "No, no! Not about all that stuff before!" he practically wailed. "I'm nervous about being with you! You're smart and kind and amazing and I finally managed to procure a date with you, but all I can do is worry about making a bad impression, all the while I am doing just that!"

In accordance with his compassionate nature, Skyfire's first reaction was to set a comforting hand on his date's shoulder plating. The words stuck him as odd though. The idea that there were genuine feelings behind those stalker-like actions was strange. He'd just imagined that the original incident had triggered a twisted fascination in the Security Director that had morphed from groping his insides to full-on stalking. "Just… Relax," he suggested slowly. Then, in what may have been a burst of insanity or a desperate gamble, he added, "Just be yourself."

Red Alert's shoulder tensed further beneath his hand. "B-But…"

"It will be easier for you to make a good impression if I see who you really are," Skyfire told him, rolling with what may have been a very bad idea.

Red Alert's expression begged for a lifeline, optics wide in a near innocent confusion.

Somehow, the look reminded him of Bluestreak. The shuttle-former found himself unable to resist as he fished around for a good topic of conversation to help the other mech relax. Luckily for him, the movie title caught his optic on the screen and he jumped on the chance. "Why did you choose this movie?" he asked, glancing back at the Lamborghini.

Once more, the Security Director's fingers began to drum nervously against his thigh. "Well... I heard that it involved the security of a home… And that it is viewed from the point of view of security cameras and the like…" he explained hesitantly, optics shifting toward the opening credits playing across the screen. "I felt it might be an enjoyable research opportunity…"

To Skyfire, it seemed a valid reason. After all, Red Alert never seemed able to let go of his work, and it wasn't surprising that it was reflected in his choice of movies. He found himself thinking that maybe, just maybe, he could enjoy a tame movie such as this. Then he researched the title online.

"Red Alert…" Skyfire began cautiously, dragging his optics across the screen before they settled back on the mech beside him. "You_do_ realize that Paranormal Activity 2 is a horror movie, right?"

Wheeljack, in his typical, unsupportive manner, immediately broke out into loud, uncontrollable peals of laughter.

Skyfire sent him a withering glare and struggled to ignore the more delicate chuckle-snorts that likely came from the red and teal scientist sitting on the lab bench beside him.

"Should I call Ratchet before or after you bust an energon line?" The shuttle inquired dryly.

Wheeljack only responded by stumbling into a wall with a clang as his laughter turned into great, gulping guffaws. Had he been human, he surely would have turned blue by now. Skyfire resisted the urge to throw a beaker at his head.

"A-And how did Red Alert react t-to it?" Perceptor stuttered between his own light giggles.

Skyfire cast a reprimanding, yet weak glare at his friend for his own giggles, but continued his explanation of the previous night none the less. "At first, he merely assured me that he could handle such fictional stories," he explained, speaking over the Lancia's desperate attempts to muffle his laughter. "But fifteen minutes into the film and he had burrowed himself between my side and my wing, while his plating shuddered so violently that several humans shushed him repeatedly." Wheeljack's laughter doubled, turning into a strangled sounding cackling. Skyfire's optics found a thick glass beaker resting beside his elbow. He reconsidered his previous dismissal of violence.

"So, I assume it didn't go well then?" Perceptor asked, his voice shaking and his lips trembling in a desperate attempt to contain his own vocal amusement.

Strangely, the barest hint of a smile touched Skyfire's lips. "Actually, no," he replied lightly. "Believe it or not, I think I enjoyed myself."

The serious, sincere tone seemed to wipe the amusement from Perceptor's face. A gentle smile took its place. "Oh? Why is that?"

Skyfire pushed the beaker away, ridding himself of the temptation, and shrugged lightly. "I suppose he can be rather… Cute, when he's vulnerable."

There was a metallic crash as Wheeljack crumpled to the floor in yet another fit of hysterical laughter.


	8. Concerning A GoodNatured Betrayal

"You're overreacting."

There was a brief flash of light from a mech's plating as he entered the room. Red Alert jumped nearly a foot off of the seat in response.

"About both."

"I-I am not!" Red Alert protested weakly, his knees clattering together in terror.

Inferno set a hand on his friend's shoulder, a comforting gesture that only alarmed his friend further. "It was just a _movie_," he groaned, removing his hand after a moment.

"It's a plausible situation!" Red Alert snapped in a terrified tone. "The existence of ghosts and evil spirits has been neither proved, nor disproved!"

Inferno pinned him with a blank stare. "Moving. On."

Red Alert responded with a weak glare and an angry sip of his energon cup. Unfortunately, he was still shaking rather violently, causing several drops to spatter over his legs and chest.

"As I was saying," Inferno began again. "You are overreacting about the whole date thing."

"I am _not_!" Red Alert insisted, trying futiley to wipe away the glowing pink stains. "It was a disaster!"

"Red, you would define a bug getting into the Ark without your notice as a disaster," the fire rig pointed out. "What made last night so bad? Please, clarify."

At his words, Red Alert visibly bristled. "Everything!" he burst out, making it apparent that his bubbling anger was directed at himself. "First, I act completely inappropriate, then I realized I had chosen a horrible movie, but worst of all was the fact that I clung to him in sheer terror through its entirety!" The Lamborghini finally gave pause; his anger slowly melting upon its release until his vocalize emitted a low whimper. "It was mortifying…!"

Inferno, being the wonderfully supportive friend that he was, broke out in a grin and clapped him on the back. "Those are good things!"

Red Alert balked at him. "Excuse me?"

"Opportunities, Red. Wonderful opportunities."

One of Red Alert's optic ridges gave a mini-spasm. "I'm afraid I don't follow," he said tightly.

"Well for one, you apologized. Which I'm pretty sure is something he previously thought you were incapable of doing."

Red Alert let out a pitiful whimper.

Inferno held his hands up. "I'm just pointing that out, didn't mean it as an insult," he explained gently.

Red Alert's head hung, his anger fading back toward his pitiful self-loathing.

Inferno rubbed his shoulder in an attempted soothing manner. "Well, here's a better example of your successful date," he continued carefully. "You snuggled up to him and he didn't push you away." He nudged his friend, grinning once more. "That's a good sign."

The Security Director only continued to look miserable. "Oh he was just being nice." He sighed pathetically. "Skyfire would never withhold comfort from someone who was scared; he's too nice for that."

"While that may be technically accurate, that is not the case in this situation."

The mech's sudden introduction hardly created a calming feeling for Red Alert, who then released a high pitched yelp of utter terror and launched himself good two feet off of his chair. Though notably, Inferno did not go without reaction. The fire rig jerked his head to the side in surprise.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to startle either of you," Perceptor said, smiling in the gentlest of ways. "May I join you?"

Red Alert looked near read to have a spark attack at that moment, so Inferno tactfully replied first. "Aren't you on Skyfire's side? I thought Wheeljack was supposed to be the 'traitor'."

Perceptor seated himself beside Inferno, gracefully folding his hands atop the table. "I only have Skyfire's best interests at spark," he dismissed.

"Y-You're here to help me?" Red Alert managed to squeak out weakly.

The small scientist nodded gently. "Which is why I want to assure you that Skyfire did enjoy your date last night," he told the security director. "He thought that your vulnerability was rather cute."

"W-What? He said that?" Red Alert asked, optics flaring to life to lock intently on the scientist across the table from him.

"He told me himself," Perceptor answered confidently.

In a matter of seconds, Red Alert's features changed from surprise to happily coy. One might have compared him, in that moment, to a blushing school girl.

Strangely, it was Inferno who suddenly sent that scientist a guarded look. "So, why are you telling us this?"

Perceptor only continued to smile that calm smile of his. "Because it seems that Skyfire's own keyed-up pride could prevent him from possibly allowing happiness in the forming of an intimate relationship."

Now Inferno smirked while Red Alert merely ducked his head in embarrassment.

"Is there any more news you'd be… willing to pass on to us?" the fire rig asked, leaning into the table as he grinned mischievously at the microscope.

"Certainly," Perceptor replied, his optics flicking softly as he smiled back. "I will provide you with any information you desire in order to help this relationship flower."

"Sounds like a betrayal to me," Inferno noted. "Not that I'm complaining."

"This is for Skyfire's own good," Perceptor repeated lightly. "It is a… good-natured betrayal."


	9. Concerning An Unexpected Conversation

Wow, I got another chapter done. o_o

Sorry about how incredibly long that took you guys!

School and life were scattered everywhere, then I got latched onto the Marvel and DC fandoms.

This story idea has been bouncing around in my head for a long time, but eventually it came out nothing like it was intended.

None the less, hope you enjoy this long overdue update!

* * *

Never a moment's peace, not in the Ark, not even in his own mind. Considering Skyfire had recently seemed to have lost his stalker, this may have seemed an odd thing, but now more than ever, the flier's thoughts were not where he wanted them to be.

Right now, working in his lab, he found himself no longer plagued by the sounds of security cameras adjusting to watch his movements or the feeling of optics boring holes through his plating. He was sure he was still being watched of course, but it seemed that the mad obsession that had previously belonged to a certain Lamborghini had calmed down. So why, oh why, could he_ still_ not concentrate upon his work?

Before him on a table lay a large number of Petri dishes holding bacteria practically screaming to be observed under a microscope, yet each time he reached for one, a new distraction would pull at his mind. It was always the same distraction, though sometimes in different forms.

_Why is Red not watching me anymore? Did he lose interest? Did he get scared? Oh I hope Mirage didn't try to get back at him after that rag stunt… Would Hound let him do that though? Oh, I'm sure he's fine. ….Maybe he thinks I hate him. Which I don't of course, but I mean… I was pretty annoyed by the entire ordeal… But I didn't mean to scare him off. Did I? I mean I don't return the feelings, that would just be absurd. The mech tried to feel me up more than once for no reason! Although maybe he was just trying to hard… I mean what happened at the movies proves that—Oh damn it to the pit Skyfire, you have to __**FOCUS**__!_

Skyfire took this opportunity to sharply smack his forehead into his palm. "I've got to stop." He groaned.

"Stop what? To me it looks like you've hardly begun." Perceptor piped up from across the table, his typical good-natured smile playing at his lips.

"That's just the problem Perceptor." Skyfire sighed, shoulders drooping as he leaned into the table. "I can't seem to concentrate long enough to begin anything!"

"By chance, do you have something on your mind?" the science mech asked.

"I suppose it's easy to see, isn't it?"

"The staring blankly at the bacteria and the array of expressions gave it away rather quickly."

"That would do it, wouldn't it?" Skyfire muttered, poking one of the dishes with the tip of a large finger. "How am I supposed to work when my mind is at war over a topic I really don't want to think about?"

"The answer is rather simple my friend. You don't." Perceptor replied. "Think of it as a spot of rust. The more you try to ignore it, the bigger the spot gets. The best way to get rid of the thoughts is to address them!"

Skyfire groaned and buried his face in his hands. "That's what I was afraid of."

Perceptor chuckled lightly and made his way around the work table. "How about you take a break, hm? Find a mindless job that will give you time to think without feeling like you need to be doing something?" He suggested, patting his large friend on the arm.

"Like what?"

"Monitor duty!"

Skyfire turned skeptical optics on his friend. "You do understand that is the primary home of the source of my thoughts, don't you?"

"Of course I do." Perceptor said, smiling. "But at this moment, someone else is on duty and I'm sure that they'd be happy to trade with you."

"Who?"

"Sideswipe."

"Oh."

"Mhmm."

Skyfire watched Perceptor a moment longer, swearing that for just a brief moment, he saw scheming in those blue optics of his. Then of course, he remembered this was Perceptor and dismissed the thought. "Thank you Perceptor, I… I think I will try that. Hopefully by the end of the shift I'll have my head clear and be back to help you with our research."

"Oh, take your time Skyfire." Perceptor said, waving a hand at him as if to shoo him out the door. "After all, this is a delicate process. We want you at full processing power, so take all the time you need to clear your head."

Needless to say, the moment Skyfire stepped into the monitor room, he knew he'd been duped by his best friend.

Red Alert sat in his chair, optics fixated on a screen, his back to Skyfire, unmoving. Had his finger not twitched once on the keyboard, the flier would have been sure that he had frozen.

"Uh… Sorry Red Alert…" Skyfire coughed uneasily, not entirely comfortable with coming face to face with the source of his mental stress. "Perceptor told me that Sideswipe was on duty."

Red Alert respond, optics still focused on the screen that showed the door into the very room they were seated in. That certainly explained why he hadn't jumped when the door opened…

Skyfire shifted uneasily in the doorway, waiting for some response. "I thought I should come and offer to take his shift…. But uh… Since you're already here, maybe I should just go—"

"It's strange." Red Alert suddenly said, his voice louder than usual as if clinging to mad some idea. "I keep seeing shadows, twisting and moving throughout the Ark."

Skyfire's optics flickered slightly. "What do you—"

"They aren't really there I suppose. Just my optics playing tricks on me, playing on my fears." Red Alert continued as if the flier hadn't said a word. "Nothing on motion sensors or the thermal sensors or anything else for that matter. I think its ghosts, but honestly, why would they be here? No humans have died here that we have record of and our kind don't seem to take on spectral forms, at least not that I've ever heard of."

"Red, is this about that movie? Listen, it's going to be okay… If you're getting spooked by the shadows, why not go outside for a bit?" Skyfire suggested, taking a step toward the distressed Security Director.

Sadly, Red Alert just continued on as if the other mech had said nothing. "I suppose I'm the problem. I always am. The weak link, right?" he said, his voice high, like he was struggling to get the words out. "I don't think they ever truly worked out that glitch I had. I'm crazy I suppose. It makes sense, after all, I've done some crazy things. Like when I tackled you? I don't know what I was thinking… And all the other things I've done to you? I'm sorry Skyfire, I really am… I just…. Oh I don't know, you just made me feel safe! That's something I never feel! I-It was just so wonderful and—"

Red Alert's words stopped abruptly when Skyfire put an arm around the smaller mech's shoulder and knelt down beside him. For the first time since he entered the room, Red Alert actually looked at him, the distressed look in his optics slowly fading. "Red, it's okay, you're fine. You aren't glitched anymore." He said softly, his own distressed thoughts dissipating suddenly. "You've just been working too hard and that movie has got you on edge."

Red Alert stared up at the mech, still towering over him even though he was kneeling on the floor. "Y-Yes… I suppose…"

"I actually came down here with the intent of getting away, but I think that's actually what you need." Skyfire suggested gently.

Red Alert's head drooped so he was staring at his lap. He gave a meager nod.

"Come on, let's go for a walk outside of the Ark then." Skyfire suggested, nudging the Security Director.

"B-But what about my shift?" Red Alert asked, turning pleading optics on the mech next to him. He obviously was struggling with his need to never abandon his post.

"I'll call in Wheeljack to take over. I figure he owes me." Skyfire told him, smiling.

Red Alert nodded slowly. "Okay…"

"We'll leave when he gets here so the Ark isn't vunerable for a moment." Skyfire continued.

Red Alert nodded again, looking almost numb to the situation present before him. For several moments he remained silent while the bot beside him alerted Wheeljack. Then, he turned his gaze upwards toward the mech of his affections, his optics lightening slightly. "Skyfire?"

"Yes, Red?"

"Could we… Um… Could you maybe take me flying later?"

Skyfire shuttered his optics once in surprise. "I thought you hated flying."

"With you it feels safe…" Red Alert admitted softly once more.

The flier, once so completely against the Security Director's presence taken in even the smallest doses, now couldn't help but smile down at him. "Sure, I'd be happy to take you flying."


End file.
